Sunday, January 11, 2015

The Maps of the Week

If you've ever wondered if it would be quicker to take the bus or the subway then you should check out Transit Battle NYC.This map shows you where in New
York you should catch the bus and when you should use the subway
instead.

Drag the marker to a location on this map of New York and you can
instantly view an overlay visualizing where you can travel to fastest by
bus and where you can travel fastest by subway. The map uses data
from the MTA's GTFS feeds for the transit time data which is then
processed with OpenTripPlanner.

Yahad – In Unum is an organization dedicated to identifying mass Jewish
execution sites and mass graves in the former Soviet Union. The
organization collects
forensic evidence and seeks out eyewitnesses to the executions
of Jews and Roma to identify holocaust sites where the Nazis and their
allies murdered Jews in towns and villages throughout Eastern Europe.

The Map of Execution Sites
is a Google Map of the sites that Yahad - In Unum has identified so
far. The red markers on the map indicate the location of execution sites
on the map where Yahad - In Unum has added details of their
investigations.

If you select a red dot on the map you can read details about the site,
including the number of witnesses interviewed and details and videos
from eye witnesses.

One of my favorite Google Maps of all time was Ze Frank's Earth Sandwich. Ze Frank's map allowed you to center a map on your location and discover
what is on the other side of the Earth on another map. Ze Frank's map
no longer works but you can now use the Antipodes Spain/New Zealand School Map instead.

The Spanish and the Kiwis are lucky because they are actually antipodes
of each other. The Spain/New Zealand School Map takes advantage of this
to try and foster partnerships between schoolchildren from each country.
Enter a Spanish or New Zealand school name into the map and you can
discover the school which is their nearest antipode. The map even
provides the address of the school on the other side of the world so
that the kids can send letters to their counterparts across the world.

If you don't live in Spain or New Zealand you can still use the map to discover your antipode.